Garnet team emerges victorious in South Carolina football spring game
Quarterback was one of South Carolina’s positions of interest heading into the spring game.
Fans have been clamoring for LaNorris Sellers to earn the starting job after flashes of athletic brilliance last season. Robby Ashford, Davis Beville and Dante Reno were all brought in, via the transfer portal and recruiting, to challenge him for that spot.
A decision on who will start Aug. 31 against Old Dominion likely won’t be made for another few months. But quarterback play, particularly from Sellers, was key to the Garnet team’s 17-0 victory over the Black team in the Garnet & Black Spring Game Saturday night at Williams-Brice Stadium.
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The Garnet team’s opening drive was all Sellers as it marched down the field and scored the first points of the game. He kicked off the drive with a play action pass to Joshua Simon to convert a first down.
Sellers also showed what he could do with his legs on multiple runs of 10 yards or more. He completed all four of his passes for 38 yards and added 27 yards — 13 of which came on his touchdown run — on three total rushing attempts.
The Black team relied heavily on its ground game on the subsequent drive. Of the eight plays it ran before the first quarter ended, it ran the ball seven times compared to just one passing play. Jawarn Howell, Larry Scott and Robby Ashford combined for 39 yards on those plays.
But the Garnet defense came up with stops on defense just as the Black team attempted to tie the game. Bryan Thomas Jr. and DeAndre Jules sacked Ashford to force a third-and-10 situation. Alex Herrera then missed the ensuing field goal attempt from long distance to keep the Black team scoreless.
Self-inflicted wounds marred both teams in the beginning of the second quarter. Just as the Garnet team was about to cross midfield, false start and holding calls pushed the team backward. More pre-snap penalties pinned the Black team deep into its own territory.
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The Garnet team had another opportunity to build on its lead before halftime, though. Sellers’ offensive production continued into the second quarter, as he provided 43 yards of offense in the period.
Sellers was productive overall in his two quarters of action, as he did not play in the second half. finishing the game with 70 passing yards and 38 rushing yards.
But despite his best efforts, the team was forced to settle for a field goal, though, despite his best efforts. Peyton Argent converted the kick to give the Garnet team a 10-0 lead.
Both offenses were slow out of the gate to start the second half. By the six-and-a-half minute mark in a 10-minute third quarter, the Garnet and Black teams already had one possession.
Unfortunately for both teams, that trend continued well into the third quarter. The Garnet and Black squads combined for just 23 total yards of offense across 10 minutes of action.
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That would change in the fourth quarter, as the Garnet team returned to its scoring ways to build on its lead.
Reno, Sellers’ replacement at quarterback, kicked off the quarter with an interception thrown to Vicari Swain.
He remained unfazed, despite the interception, and led the Garnet team on a scoring drive on his next possession. Reno flung a touchdown pass to Maurice Brown II to make the score 16-0. William Joyce‘s ensuing field extra point attempt made it a 17-point lead for Garnet.
That would prove to be all the offense the Garnet team needed, as Isaiah McClary intercepted a pass from Beville on the ensuing possession to seal the victory.
